


And Then Time Stops

by Ackerhardt



Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Canon Divergence, Def OOC at times, Demon Deals, Dubious Morality, Grooming, Heavy Angst, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Mental Instability, Physical Abuse, Psychological Trauma, Valentino Is A Jerk (Hazbin Hotel), Velvet is nice, Vox dies in 1990s here for some reason, author regrets everything, isolation as torture, references to DID
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:55:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24827929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ackerhardt/pseuds/Ackerhardt
Summary: Being a new arrival in Hell, Vox assumed that he had a good handle on things. He considered himself to be quite adept in these things.But clearly, that wasn’t the case, as he now sits in silence, contemplating at what point things had gone so terribly wrong, and how.
Relationships: Valentino & Velvet & Vox (Hazbin Hotel), Valentino/Vox (Hazbin Hotel), Velvet/Vox (Hazbin Hotel)
Comments: 23
Kudos: 99





	1. Valentino

Vox should’ve known, even if he’d only been in Hell for a year, it didn’t matter. He’d spent enough time uptop to know that in places like these, it’s always the charming ones. If someone was particularly fluent in their mannerisms or perhaps easy to speak to, it  _ always  _ meant that they were using those talents for something. That  _ something  _ coming from whoever they were communicating with. Vox  _ knew this,  _ he wouldn’t consider himself a fool. 

Yet, Valentino had been as clever as he had been suave. Vox had been skeptical of the freakishly tall Overlord, with good reason. He’d only arrived in Hell, and some well established Overlord had come to visit in the midst of his first territorial takeover. Vox didn’t doubt that if he posed a problem, he’d be erased then and there, his powers may have grown with the erasure of this territory's overseeing ‘landowner’. But Vox’s plans needed more time before he would even consider contesting an Overlord, he wasn’t nearly brash or overconfident enough for that kind of stunt. If only he’d know that a brief death from the Overlord would’ve been far more merciful than what was to come instead. 

“You’ve got quite the style going here. Can’t say I’m not curious, or that I’m not  _ interested _ in you.” Valentino had stated with that cool, commanding and confident tone of voice. The same tone that could make anything, no matter how absurd, sound like an absolute fact not to be questioned. Paired along with the compliment, it made Vox’s head spin, and forgetting one of his fundamental rules, he was utterly enamored by the other. 

“Oh yeah?” He quipped, having a persona to keep. No way would he let the moth know how intrigued he was. 

“Oh~Absolutely.” Valentino had leaned in, well beyond Vox’s personal space. An action that had caught Vox off guard, the boldness of it more than he was used to in his lifetime. “I don’t suppose someone as smart as you would consider making  _ a deal _ with  _ me _ off the bat?”

“How observant of you.” Vox had stood his ground, refusing to lean back and create distance, he wasn’t a coward. He hadn’t known it then, but this, along with what he said,  _ how he said it _ and how he acted were all things Valentino was using to profile him. To see if he was what the Overlord was looking for. 

“Perfect! Now this territory of yours borders rather dangerously close to mine, and as your new neighbor I couldn’t help but come over and greet you personally.” Valentino smiled that deceptively calm and devious smile of his and Vox’s interest had grown. “Especially one so technologically... _ gifted.”  _ Vox hadn’t been so accustomed to his new body that Hell had so graciously gifted him yet, meaning that he’d flushed a deep blue on the spot. The compliment had served its purpose, fully drawing in his attention and warding off any concerns he’d had. It had also established his skill set specification, a skill set that Valentino had been lacking in personnel for awhile now. 

“Is that an invite? A suggestion?” Vox’s voice had betrayed his curiosity and Valentino had smiled at him brightly, single gold tooth glinting. 

“Mhmm.” Valentino had let one of his arms travel down along Vox’s back, which he’d quickly removed. While he was all for touch, never with a stranger. He’d missed the way Valentino’s smile had faltered at this outright rejection from him. “It’s whatever you want it to be.”  _ Ah, the illusion of choice.  _ Still a personal favorite tactic of Valentino’s, if only Vox had noticed sooner. 

“Sounds like fun, I’ll take you up on that offer.” Vox had grinned, as if he had any idea what he was getting into. 

“I had a feeling you’d say that.” Valentino had responded evenly as Vox had swatted another of the Overlord’s intrusive hands. “How would you feel about meeting me at my Studio tomorrow, in the evening? I’d send for you of course.” 

“So soon? I’d have thought you’d be a busy man.” Vox had propped up his screen against his hand. 

“I’ve  _ always  _ got time for upcoming talent like  _ yours.”  _ Valentino had risen to his full height at that, reminding Vox just how intimidating the Overlord was. “Hopefully I’ll be seeing more of you tomorrow.” And with a wink, Valentino had gone, heels clacking against the concrete before disappearing into a limousine. 

Vox really wished he’d chosen to take over the other side of Pentagram city, closer to that Radio Freak Alistair(?) something beginning with Al anyway. Maybe things would’ve panned out better for him then, not that he would ever find out. But  _ he hadn’t chosen there.  _

Vox could still recall the elation he’d felt at the introduction, messaging all of his now former friends, or associates he supposed. Most had given some form of encouragement, even if it was clearly passive aggressive. It was still pleasant.

Then he’d browsed the newly set up web he’d arranged around the area, looking for anything and everything about Valentino.  _ He hadn’t found much,  _ but still a lot more then when he’d looked for anything on the Radio Freak. Why he hated the Radio based Overlord so much already was annoying,  _ how could anyone be so ignorant to the workings of the world and still hold  _ **_any_ ** _ power?  _ In hindsight, it shouldn’t have been a surprise that the deer demon would later become his rival. 

Truthfully, Vox can’t remember much about the first meetup with Valentino, it had held nothing of importance, or at least he’d thought so back then. It had felt like a social call, but now he could see it was just a way for Valentino to familiarize his presence to him. Also to advertise all the possible gains should Vox choose to consider a deal of some sort. Truly it had worked too, Vox had found himself enjoying the conversations he shared with Valentino, and the confident aura that surrounded the Overlord was intoxicating. These meetups became frequent between them and Vox didn’t mind. Vox could guess now that Valentino would’ve kept up at it all the way until he had charmed Vox to the point of accepting his proposition. 

This proposition didn’t come too long after. It had felt like it would be the best day of his life when Valentino had been impressed by his ‘talents’ so much that he wanted to form a partnership.  _ A partnership.  _ A partnership would automatically make him an Overlord, not to mention all the assets he’d gain from becoming equal to Valentino and his Porn industry based empire. Such a deal was just too good to be true, and even then he’d known to be suspicious. But boy was he wrong, the deal had been legitimate, but that hadn’t been the point. the deal had been a distraction, a red herring from the true scheme Valentino had set out for his life. A plan so elaborate and subtle that he hadn’t noticed it at all until recently. Too little too late. 

It had all started after he’d sealed the deal, which happened through some coercing on Valentino’s side. because back then he’d been convinced that he could trust the Overlord. But Did he really not trust Valentino currently? Vox wasn’t so sure anymore. 

What he did know was that the true plan had started with small steps. Once he’d gotten Vox comfortable with his company, he moved onto normalizing the touching, the constant contact that Valentino enjoyed so much. He’d kept at it until Vox had gotten so used to it that he didn’t question nor bother to reject anymore. The brushing of shoulders, thighs and sides pressed up against one another while seated, hands on his shoulder and then the bolder ones followed, arm(s) around his waist, resting on the small of his back and looping around his shoulder. Ending with Valentino’s amusement at his small antennae. 

Next he could remember how strongly Valentino disapproved of his friends. He’d start pointing out all forms of negative connotations in hangout invitations, text correspondences etc. that Vox had supposedly missed before. It had made sense, what Valentino was saying. Of course his friends would be jealous of him, and try to tear down his newly growing fame as a new Overlord. He would’ve done the same should any of his friends have become Overlords. It had made it so much easier for him to cease all contact with them then, because why bother having friends that would just turn into more enemies? Besides, as Valentino had also told him, he didn’t need them anymore. 

Without any second opinions now, nor any other obligations besides Valentino, Vox spent almost all of his time with his Overlord partner now. Within all that time Valentino had gifted him great amounts of territory to watch over, so to speak. His territory became huge due to the generosity of Valentino, and Vox could hardly believe the other.  _ It was too generous!  _ But how could new territory ever be a bad thing? Yet, Oh how bad it had been, it was the very thing that had sealed his fate, much worse than any deal he ever could of hoped to make. Not only that, but Valentino helped him create and shape a new reputation. He couldn’t deny that it hadn’t been extremely fun to see all the sinners scramble to appease him, or flee from him. All that had served as the gateway for their sexual endeavors afterwards. It was the least he could do after all, and besides, it was sex, who didn’t want that? 

Though it was shortly after this that he first started to realize that ulterior motives were at play. Everything together was just too out of place, and Valentino had stopped bothering to hide some of his more telling behavior. It became most apparent with how Valentino addressed him now, and sometimes how he acted around him. It was all Probably because he’d known that no matter what, Vox would be trapped in this deal they made, and not even because of the deal itself. But in that time, he’d only just started to test out his theory, which had begun this Hell that he was in now. 

He started with testing Valentino’s patience in regards to his reputation in public events. Turns out Valentino had no patience at all for such shenanigans. He’d picked the worst possible option to try and rile up Valentino. That was the first time he’d seen the other Overlord lose his cool facade and the first time that he had been introduced to  _ the room.  _ More like what was in  _ the room  _ though. Which was the exact point, there was nothing in it. It was simply a room surrounded by four concrete walls, with no light at all and just...nothing, not even the texture changed beyond the door into it. 

The first night Valentino forced him into it wasn’t bad. He could recall being a bit unsettled but that was it. And when he’d confronted Valentino about this outrageous action of forcing him in, he went around it using the deal they made. Accordingly he was ‘helping’ Vox by doing it, he’d offered a longer explanation that Vox couldn’t bother to recite anymore. All that really mattered was that Valentino  _ could  _ do it without any complications, and that Vox had set himself into a position where he couldn’t refuse it. So it didn’t matter that the only reason Valentino did it was because Vox wasn’t acting like Valentino wanted him to act, which realizing now was the whole point.

That’s when he could remember the first time that  _ the room  _ had brought any sense of dread to him. It was after he’d spent a few days in it, per Valentino’s extension of his allotted time to spend in there. The lack of stimuli, it...it messed with him badly. He swore he started visual and auditory hallucinations of all kinds, he couldn’t keep straight trains of thought, there was just so much time to think, he couldn’t sleep because he had no idea when he was supposed to be going to bed and worst of all was the all consuming loneliness and boredom. He had nothing to do, and no one to keep him company as he’d been used to having for his whole life. He guessed it was why he started to imagine people in there that weren’t actually there. He  _ hated  _ it there, it  _ terrified  _ him like nothing had in a very long time. 

After spending two weeks in it once, he’d started to have mental breakdowns, and crippling anxiety at the mention of having to spend any time in there. Just the mere mention. Which is why he started to listen to Valentino more and more, it couldn’t be worse than being in there. And the thought of having to spend a longer time there every time, after just barely surviving the last time was too much.  _ He couldn’t take it. _

“I don’t think this partnership is going to work.” Vox had told Valentino, when they’d both been smoking on one of his balconies. When he’d realized the extent of the effect Valentino was having in life, on purpose. And when he’d gotten to a point where he felt actual fear towards the other. 

“Ha! I know you’re more clever than that Vox~!” Valentino had turned to Vox with an almost cruel grin now. “So why don’t you be a good boy and tell Daddy what’ll happen if you choose to do that.” 

Vox could remember the way he down casted his expression that had previously held so much certainty. But Valentino would have none of that, and used one of his hands to lift his screen to face him again. 

“Go on, nice and clearly.” Valentino urged. 

“First you’ll kick me to the curb.” Vox said bitterly as a starter, none of his previous confidence present. 

“Mhmm, and then?” 

“Word’ll get out…” Vox provided, knowing full well, he’d thought about all of this plenty of times. 

“And when word comes out, what’ll happen to you Vox? You who owns so much territory, has crossed so many demons. What’ll happen when you’re without support out there?” Valentino said with a sickly sweet tone. 

“I’m fucked.” Vox knew that, the sinners out there would not pass up that kind of opportunity, and he knew Valentino would make sure of that too. Not that he needed to, with how Valentino had painted a target on his back on purpose. Limiting his options of escape. Vox had no allies besides Valentino, not enough experience to hold his own, huge amounts of assets and a new rival to boot. Valentino knew all this too, it had been his intention with all this quite literally. 

“Quite fucked.” Valentino agreed, before roughly shoving Vox over his shoulder as Vox let out a surprised sound of distress. “But I really didn’t like your implication in the slightest, even if it was obvious you weren’t going to act on it.” Valentino continued, referring to their conversation. Vox glanced around his shoulder quickly, he knew exactly what Valentino was implying himself. 

“Wait—Val—“ 

“No buts about it.” Valentino ignored Vox’s protests that grew more alarmed as they kept moving on. All the way until, they stood in front of the very thing that caused him so much grief. Still, Valentino spared no time in forcing him inside. 

“Be brave for me.” Was what was said to Vox before the door was closed. 

“No!!wait—“ Vox was at the door, even though he knew it was pointless, futile. Still some part of him hoped, pleaded that he wouldn’t be left here again. 

“Please..don’t leave me.” Vox called weakly after a minute, before knowing Valentino had already left. 

And that was how he’d ended up here now, with no idea how much time he’d spent here, or how long he was  _ supposed  _ to spend here. He’d put the guess at weeks now, but he couldn’t think about it for long without having his thoughts spiral and going through another breakdown. Not that he could have many long trains of thoughts anymore. It’s why he’d started going over his time in Hell to himself, this was about the eighth time he’d finished with that. 

He knew it was changing his view on the whole matter, but after being  _ here  _ for so long, he couldn’t be bothered to care. He didn’t want die, but he just couldn’t be in here anymore, he couldn’tcouldn’tcouldn’t—

What was the problem anyway? He’d just let Valentino take the lead like he wanted, that was simple right? He’d get to keep his assets, his accumulated wealth, reputation, impact and status. Why was he complaining again? Just a little more compliant, that was easy. So easy compared to this, so so so easy. Easy. Was that him talking? 

Maybe if he tried sleeping again? Some of the time would go away again, even if it was only minutes, he’d take it. 

He tried, he really did. Not that it mattered. It didn’t. Never. 

The walls were opening again, can’t trust them. 

He curled in on himself in the corner to block his view and try to calm his erratic thought process. 

He heard the door open. But it had done that before. He didn’t want his hopes dashed anymore. 

Heels.

Vox stood up abruptly at the sound. The door, it was open,  _ it was really open.  _ Valentino stood at the outskirts of it, looking curious from Vox could tell, not that he could tell much. 

He didn’t care, taking brisk steps, he stood in front of Valentino and then abruptly hugged the much taller Overlord. 

The  _ contact _ and  _ texture _ , it was amazing after however long it had been. That’s all he cared about as he continued holding on. Few moments later he felt the action reciprocated, and he let himself revel in the increased contact. He was content for the moment, and the sleep deprivation was catching up to him. 

Valentino caught onto this as he whisked Vox gently off his feet, all while Vox refused to let go. 

“Don’t leave, I need you.” Vox murmured as he thought Valentino was going to leave him in the hallway. But Valentino had simply begun heading back to his room, Vox in toe. 

“Don’t you worry your little TV head about that, I’m not going nowhere.” Valentino responded after a bit, grinning like a madman while Vox fell asleep, tired and relieved beyond comprehension.  _ It was going to be over on his part  _ **_finally_ ** _.  _

  
  
  
  



	2. Velvet

Vox liked Velvet, even from the start he knew that he liked her very much. She was very energetic and positive, but most importantly, she was transparent. Nothing too malicious hidden under a facade. But it wasn’t just Vox who liked her, Valentino did too, albeit for different reasons. He particularly respected her boldness, unique outlook and intimate knowledge of internet fame. Though even Vox had to admit that she was  _ very very  _ bold. 

Best example being the way she introduced herself. She’d very blatantly blackmailed them and showed up personally, demanding to join the two of them as an Overlord. Vox had been stunned into silence by her demand, while Valentino had been impressed. It was safe to say that she got to join, anyone with enough skill to blackmail the two of them, and brave enough to confront them about it in person was free to join anytime. She had been absolutely ecstatic to join, promptly pulling the both of them into an awkward hug, declaring that they were going to have a great deal of fun together. 

Vox wouldn’t deny that they did have a great deal of fun together. He automatically gravitated to her as she was the first ally that Valentino had allowed him to interact with in a very long time. Not only that, but her cheerful personality absolutely enamored him. He was  _ obsessed.  _ Any time he could spend with her he did, whether it be because she wanted to or because Valentino had left somewhere. She gave him an inch and he took a mile.

His intensity seemed to surprise her, but she didn’t push him away and he felt absolutely blessed for it. She was his escape, his emancipation from reality. The times she sent him memes, talked about fashion or anything on her mind, invited him to outings with either her or her multitude of friends, just  _ anything  _ with her. It was something that didn’t involve Valentino, and something he didn’t  _ have to do,  _ something he got to choose to partake and choose  _ how  _ to partake. It was intoxicating to him, the freedom. He said and did what he wanted, reveling in the knowledge that there wouldn’t be any repercussions should he perhaps slip up on something. It was like  _ before,  _ when he was  _ himself.  _

He couldn’t help the admiration he held for her either. Her carefree attitude and rather reckless modus operandi. She feared nothing, no one and carried this comforting  _ confident  _ aura to her. Yet, she was no fool either, reckless sure, but not an idiot. She knew how to get what she wanted, and most curiously oftentimes used kindness to do it. Not that she wouldn’t tear someone’s organs out, or run someone’s reputation to the ground, but her methods were so unique in Hell, if very unpredictable at times. But what did Vox care, he got to watch her in action, it was amazing. Though if he was completely honest, he  _ hated  _ all of this about her as well. Pangs of jealousy ran through him, she was  _ everything  _ that he just  _ wasn’t _ . 

While he himself was completely aware of the depth that his infatuation ran, he kept it carefully hidden from the watchful eyes of others. Namely Valentino, as he knew Valentino wouldn’t let him interact with her anymore if he discovered that Vox liked her more than him. And he liked her  _ so much more  _ than Valentino. 

Valentino was an incredibly jealous demon, and Vox’s affections were to be saved for him only. And Vox did, he gave Valentino what he wanted, despite the cruelty he received in turn. This in time manifested some smaller, broken and messed up part of him that enjoyed it, enjoyed the way he was treated. Every mark left on him by Valentino’s sharp fingers or rough handling, every sharp and nasty word meant to hurt him on a personal level. The pain, it was his pleasure. Valentino  _ knew, noticed  _ the change in him and Valentino kept at it, pushing past more than he could take, until this smaller part of him grew bigger, consuming more of his being. Until he was begging for Valentino to hurt him more, because it  _ felt so good.  _ And already he’d started to, he wanted Valentino to use him like the broken toy he was, to punish him like the brat he acted and—The more he thought about it, the more it terrified him. His personality, everything he was, was just disappearing before him. He couldn’t hold onto any of the values or qualities he had anymore, his whole existence was being replaced by a need to  _ appease  _ Valentino. Whatever semblance of his pride that was left strongly objected to this, his identity would not be replaced by whatever this was.

Which is why he had run, run to Velvet, trying to strengthen his sense of himself, his self worth and his psyche. Of course he knew that it was a losing battle. He was falling apart faster than he could build himself back up.  _ The room  _ that Valentino confined him to occasionally was too much for his crumbling psyche, it took a part of him with it every time. That small, ever growing part of him always came to him in there. It had a form in the dark, it whispered to him, promising that all Vox had to do was give up control. It promised to protect Vox from all the pain he was feeling, to shield him from the horror of the situation. Every time he grew closer to accepting, he wanted to be safe, to stop feeling so much anguish daily. Just let it take over for him, then it wouldn’t be his problem anymore. And why was he being so selfish anyway? It would make Valentino happy and him too if a little. But he couldn't yet, couldn’t become an empty husk of himself that only lived for Valentino. No matter how much he was being pushed into that role. 

He cleared his thoughts, as he focused on the now again. Right now he was sitting next to Valentino, flushed up against the other Overlord with Velvet sitting across from them. Valentino wasn’t very happy, a personal favorite star of his had run off to this new establishment called ‘the Happy Hotel’. And with it being run by both the Princess of Hell and Alastor the Radio Demon, there wasn’t much control Valentino could exert over the Spider Demon anymore. 

Vox personally felt for Angel Dust, he understood to a great extent what life was like for him. But right now he felt like Angel Dust had been a genius, and a great first tester. If Angel could disappear into the Hotel, Vox could too. Still, he was having doubts. Just earlier Valentino banned both him and Velvet from going there, labeling it as a disgrace. And while Vox agreed that redemption was fucking stupid, the thought process behind it intrigued him now. If it all worked out, he’d get to be free from all this. Of course the other issue with trying to stay at the Hotel was that Alastor worked there, and he would not take kindly to Vox’s entrance. Not to mention it would be a disaster if Alastor ever found out just how scared of Valentino he had become. It would be pretty unavoidable though, Alastor was keen with his observations. Still, If he got to stay at the Hotel, it would all be worth it. But that was an  _ if.  _

“Penny for your thoughts? You just seem so deep in thought.” Valentino asked him, breaking the silence. 

“Just some really fucking annoying work stuff.” Vox replied without missing a beat. Appearances were everything in Hell, he fully intended on keeping his.  _ The show must go on,  _ he supposed. 

“Maybe they wouldn’t be so annoying if you didn’t keep procrastinating on ‘em.” Velvet remarked from across him, phone in hand. 

_ “You  _ don’t even  _ do  _ any work.” Vox countered as Velvet smiled up at him innocently. 

“I  _ do  _ plenty!” Velvet said with a dismissive shrug. She watched as Vox sneered at her when she took a picture of him to post to her social media. Vox didn’t say anything more as he moved from Valentino’s side to reach his phone, and Velvet watched Valentino pull the other back next to him when Vox had his phone. She had plenty of questions about the relationship the two shared, she’s been told that they were in a relationship together, but she wasn’t blind. Something about it was  _ off,  _ and sure this was Hell and all, but there was something she was missing that would place this odd relation between the two. Something that explained Vox’s contrasting personalities from when he was with her and when he was with Valentino. Something that explained  _ the look  _ Val gave Vox sometimes. 

She ignored it at first, not really thinking it was important. Maybe it was some freaky power play that followed them to the bedroom.  _ Which she could hear all the way to her own bedroom.  _ She often questioned what the hell they were doing in there, making that much noise. 

She started getting more curious after Vox started interacting with her in general and just hanging around with her so much. He would do so at every opportunity, she really hadn’t expected that. Sure a lot of people loved her, but he spent time with her like his life depended on it. She didn’t mind, she liked the attention. She had no problem admitting that it made her feel special. Though it wasn’t like she didn’t already know that. What confused her was how coldly he regarded her whenever anyone else was involved. It’s almost like he found it embarrassing to be seen with her. And that  _ pissed her off.  _ He’d disregard her or belittle her in front of Val, and sneer whenever she tried to talk or take a selfie with him in public. She wasn’t going to say anything though, she  _ wasn’t  _ the  _ desperate  _ one here,  _ he was.  _

Then there were the moments when he was surprisingly genuine. She remembered getting caught in her first major battle alone against Rosie. That stuck up bitch deserved it. Unfortunately she’d been on the losing end, Rosie had too much experience compared to her. Velvet didn’t want to lose, she  _ couldn’t.  _ The Internet did not forgive nor forget. But before she could lose, she felt another presence enter the plainfield and then felt someone tug her back up so she was standing. 

“Get up.” Vox told her as she stumbled a bit. “I know first battles can be hard, and you bit off a bit more than you could chew with this one.” He chuckled with amusement. 

“It’s not my fault, she’s an absolute ass!” Velvet gestured over to Rosie who looked as calm as ever, preparing to counter Vox again. 

“Not going to disagree, but listen quickly.” Vox shot a look at Rosie, offhandedly bringing down the power lines nearby as a distraction. Clearly he had no intention to fight this. “If you think you’re going to lose, or are in trouble.  _ Don’t  _ hesitate to rely on either me or Val, we’re all partners now and we’ll help. Got that?” 

Velvet stared a little dumbfounded, ‘ _ rely on us’  _ that was a new concept to her. It sounded nice, and with the way Vox had said it, she believed him, “Yes!” She cheered. Vox nodded and turned his attention to Rosie fully. 

“Ah Rosie! Do tell how dear old Al is doing? He still stuck in the time before land?” Vox grinned widely, and Velvet noted how much fun the other had making fun of Alastor. Rosie laughs in a jeering manner. 

“And you think you’re so clever too.” Rosie shook her head before turning to look to her right knowingly. Velvet watched as the shadow next to her manifested itself into Alastor. She had to admit, it was a cool entrance. 

“Ah come now my dear, don’t be mean.” Alastor addressed Rosie with a wide grin of his own. “It’s not his fault that he got bolts for brains.” They snickered unanimously, and Velvet could really understand why Vox hated Alastor so much.

“Oh please, you’re talking like he wouldn’t be able to overtake the both of you even with bolts for brains.” Velvet dusted off her dress, smiling with glee once she was done. 

“Now now Velvet.” Vox added with a mockingly admonishing tone. “Don’t be cruel, it’s not their fault that their brains stopped developing along with their bygone era.” They high-fived, staring down the two for a short amount of time after. 

“That being said, let’s leave these dinosaurs to their hopeless roaming, they don’t have too much time left after all.” Vox ushered her to follow despite her mild protests. They could take these two!! 

“You’d really wish for that to happen, wouldn’t you Vox?” Alastor turned, linking hands with Rosie. 

“Advancement waits for no one Alastor.” Vox simply said, before heading for Valentino’s limo that was waiting not too far away. Velvet noted that Vox’s carefree demeanor slipped away as they approached the vehicle. 

That was quite fun, Velvet remarks to herself. Fighting in general was a thrill, it was  _ exciting!  _ All this political standstill bullshit was annoying. She wouldn’t be foolish enough to try and break it before a good opportunity though. Besides, she had a mystery to figure out between her two partners. Also, why had Vox recently disappeared for a week without notice? It wasn’t exactly the first time, but what the Hell was that all about? Valentino dismissed her concerns saying he was ‘busy’ and Vox snapped at her whenever she asked him. 

Interrupting her thoughts, Velvet could hear Val curse under his breath while looking at his phone. Val wasn’t very fun when he was in a bad mood, everyone agreed on that. Velvet just hoped it wasn’t anything too bad, she didn’t want to deal with a pissy Val. 

“I’m going to need to attend to something for a bit.” Val stood up, huffing, it was clear that someone had fucked up and was going to be utterly fucked when Val arrived. F to them Velvet state’s internally. 

“Who’s funeral is it?” Velvet decided to push the matter. 

“I’m going to find out.” Val said more to himself than anyone else. His face lit up as he pulled Vox up from his sitting position, two hands sliding down to his ass, one gently wiping some grime off the edge of Vox’s screen.

“You’ll be good while Daddy’s gone, won’t you?” Then Val’s intensity dropped when he turned to Velvet. “You too.” 

“I’m a good noodle.” Velvet smiled, hopping up from the couch. “Don’t worry! I’ll keep him—“ she gestured to Vox. “—out of trouble as well!” 

Val seems amused by this, while Vox crosses his arms, “You are literally the cause of all our problems.” 

“Pfft—“ 

“I have a list.” Vox leaves Val’s hold to fetch his phone. Velvet pouts at this, that was just unnecessary. 

“Behave both of you, I should be back soon.” Val reminded them both one last time. After which he called for one of his workers to get his transport ready. 

Immediately Vox went onto his phone, frantically searching for something. Velvet watched confused, there was noticeable distress on his face. Her suspicion grew as he went over to the window, watching carefully until he saw Val’s limo leave. 

That caused Vox to head for the downstairs, not before she caught a glimpse of the Happy Hotel logo on his phone.  _ She understood now.  _ He was leaving, for some reason, he was running away. But this brought so many new questions to Velvet’s mind. 

“You’re leaving…” she trailed off and saw Vox freeze before the door. “...To that Hotel that Val hates.” She could see Vox dig his fingers into his palm as he must’ve been considering his words. 

“Look...things are  _ complicated.”  _ Vox said carefully and then his tone took on a more pleading note, something Velvet hadn’t seen before. It was surprising to say the least. “Just, don’t tell Val, okay?” 

“Huh?” Were their relations  _ that  _ bad, Velvet felt like she was processing everything annoyingly slow. 

_ “Please.”  _ Vox  _ actually  _ looked a bit desperate now. 

“Uh..alright.” She said, still reeling from the sudden shift in Vox’s demeanor. 

And with that, he left. 

Vox knew he had to be quick. He might be able to trust Velvet somewhat, but the majority of everyone else in the Studio worked for Val and would not hesitate to snitch on his ass. He managed to avoid most of the workers, but a few saw him leaving, it was unavoidable. The next issue was already giving some anxiety, but with the Princess running the Hotel, anyone should be allowed to stay, right? Despite how Alastor felt about it, not that Vox would be happy to spend any time with that hazbin either. Right now though, he’d deal with it. 

The Hotel wasn’t much different from what he’d caught glimpses of before. Namely, a very weirdly shaped and clearly not sound architecture. Luckily he wasn’t here  _ for  _ the architecture. 

The doors appeared to be unlocked, so he let himself in, closing the doors behind him gently. Landing himself in what he assumed was the lobby. Behind it was a familiar figure, one of Alastor’s subordinates and in front of it he recognized Angel Dust and the Princess. Good, he needed to talk to her. 

They all looked bewildered by his sudden appearance, and he wasn’t very surprised himself at that. 

“The fuck are you doing here?” The cat demon behind the bar asked first, sounding annoyed and skeptical. 

“Are you here for the Hotel..?” The Princess asked, not sounding very confident in her question. 

“Yes, I’m here for the Hotel.” Vox affirmed and he was at with silence, until he felt the tell tale radio static that accompanied Alastor.  _ Great… _

“Absolutely not.” Alastor appeared in front of him, a respectful distance away, but with a smile that held no amusement. Vox gave Alastor an unimpressed cross of his arms. 

_ “Everyone  _ deserves a chance at redemption, right?” He looked to the Princess for confirmation, not standing the sight of Alastor any longer. 

“Yes! You truly want to be redeemed?” Charlie asked, not sounding judgemental, merely curious. “It’s not easy work.” 

“An attempt at least is what I’m willing to do.” Vox wasn’t here really for the redemption, just the protection. 

“You? Redemption! Ha! That’s the most hilarious thing I’ve heard all day!” A laugh track accompanied Alastor’s prodding. “Take your schemes, territorial squabbles and pathetic instruments back to where you came from.” 

“For someone who relies on a facade heavily, you seem awfully uneducated to the whole concept.” Vox glared, why couldn’t this fucking old timey loser just leave, he didn’t have the patience to deal with this shit. 

“Stop!” Charlie cut in before the arguing could continue. “If you’re ready to live by the rules of this Hotel, I’ll let you stay, and may you find success.” 

“I’ll adhere to them.” Vox said, it shouldn’t be too hard, but he couldn’t be sure. But anything compared to Val was starting to look easy now. A part of him denied this, reminding him how easy things would be if he gave in, but he ignored it. This was his  _ hope.  _

Charlie handed him a key, and quieter than before Vox said something to her, “If Val comes, don’t tell him I’m here. It would...be bad for the redemption process.” He shifted awkwardly and with the key, headed upstairs to find where he’d be staying. 

Alastor was going to retort and Charlie was going to question when Angel of all demons lifted his hand to silence them. Angel had his gaze trained to where Vox had disappeared to. 

“Just...just do it. Ya wouldn’t understand.” Angel informed both of them with the utmost seriousness. 

Charlie couldn’t find it in herself to argue when Angel was being so serious. Clearly something was at play that she didn’t understand. 

—

Velvet noted that it took a week for whatever Val had gone to do. And in that week, Vox hadn’t come back. He wasn’t coming back, Velvet had long since realized. She kind of wanted him to, it just wasn’t the same without all three of them, and felt that the repercussions of this loss would be considerable as well. Vox managed a lot of the network usage, functionality and all forms of coding, not to mention he was a great source of their power. Without him, things would be harder. 

It seemed that Velvet wasn’t the only one talking about Vox’s disappearance either. Most of the staff were prattling about it, but what made it odd was the way none of them were surprised. At least to all the highest ranking and most experienced workers it seemed natural, while the rest seemed confused, like herself, about all the talk. 

She wanted to know the whole scoop, so she invited her two most trusted workers, that happened to be former workers of Val’s for ice cream. So that they could spill the tea and such. 

“Vox’s gone, and nobody is batting an eye? What am I missing about all this here?” Velvet gave the two of them their scoops of ice cream, now she wanted her scoop of information. 

“Ah honey, it’s something you’ll see for yourself soon enough, especially now.” One of them, Adeleine said, glancing over to the other, Kaunotar. 

“See for myself?” Velvet further inquired, why did everyone have to be so stupidly mysterious!! She got the gist of the situation but what was the unsettling part that had everyone so quiet about it? 

“Yea def, Big V’s gonna flip when he finds Vox gone.” Kaunotar pointed out the obvious for the both of them. “He ain’t stayin’ gone for long, which I mean, answers ya question, we know he’s comin’ back soon, so there’s nothin’ to worry ‘bout.” 

“Whenever Val comes back that is.” Adeleine supplies. “But I don’t think that’s what you wanna know, is it sweetie? And truthfully none of us really know the whole thing either. We just know that Val does something that has Vox screaming and pleading for mercy without fail every time.” 

“It’s freaky as shit, a total 180 in his normal personality ya know?” Kaunotar said as Adeleine murmurs in agreement. 

“What? No way!” It really would be a 180, and Velvet had seen Vox in tough situations before. 

“Just ya wait.” 

The conversation had left Velvet unsettled, so she partially understood the others now. She couldn’t fully believe the two of them, but with how Vox acted and with his recent disappearance, she couldn’t fully deny it either. 

If it all was true, she didn’t know how to feel about any of it. She wanted to be mad, sad or concerned. But she liked  _ both  _ of them, and to hear that one could treat the other so poorly. It confused her emotions. She wanted them to  _ stop,  _ she wanted to  _ help.  _ But she didn’t know which to act on, and for  _ who?  _ If either of them.

The two had said that everything would start when Val returned, and it seemed they were right. The first night Val didn’t notice or care about the absence of Vox. She figured he hadn’t realized that Vox was  _ gone  _ gone yet. And that revelation would come today, midday as Val first got curious to the whereabouts of Vox. 

“Now I’m a bit confused, where  _ is  _ Vox exactly?” Val had asked Velvet. 

“Oh I dunno, I’ve been busy.” She lied, she’d told Vox that she wouldn’t expose his whereabouts. And now she felt like that was for the best as well, even if she missed him now. Maybe she’d try to sneak a few visits soon? 

Valentino gestured over a worker of his from the corner, “Where the fuck is Vox?” 

“You see...that's, we were going to tell you—“ 

“ _ Tell me what.”  _ Val’s tone dropped very quickly as the worker looked ready to pass out from the glare he was receiving. “ _ Where.is.he.”  _

“We uh—we got sightings that would po-possibly suggest that he’s at the...at the Happy Hotel.” They finished, as Val was processing the sentence. 

“And  _ exactly  _ how long did  _ you all  _ keep this from  **_me?_ ** _ ”  _

“We weren’t sure if the sightings were legitimate!!” The worker scrambled as all the others averted their eyes, fearing that if they met with Val’s they’d be dead. “It’s—it’s been a week.” 

“ _ A week?!”  _ Val seemed to be taking it all in, and as the two had told Velvet, was flipping out at it. “ _ That little piece of shit.”  _

It all went downhill from there, as Velvet watched, her own indecision growing. From next to her Adeleine and Kaunotar made a bet. 

“100 bucks that Val will bring him back tonight.” 

“You’re on, there’s no way! At least a day.” 

—

Vox wasn’t sure how he felt about staying at the Hotel. It wasn’t particularly hard, all the rehabilitation crap. You see, he didn’t have any major addictions: drugs, alcohol and such that would be hard to kick. Nor did he have anything like Alastor’s insatiable hunger for flesh and blood. But despite that, it was still very boring, he spent a lot of time anonymously browsing the Internet and attending the Princess’ ‘therapy’ sessions with everyone. The mundaneness of it all would have killed him before, but after spending time in...yeah, it really wasn’t that boring. He at least had something to do, and he could experience things. 

Another major downside was the entirety of Alastor. He strutted about the place like he owned it, and offered absolutely nothing of use (besides the food, which still doesn’t help him) and took great pride in being the annoying asshole he was. Vox tried (sometimes) to be neutral towards the deer, and he found that shockingly Alastor did the same quite often, but there were those times. Plenty of those times when one just couldn’t take it, and then they’d get a harsh reminder from Charlie that the Hotel was a no conflict zone, and to ‘make up with each other’. They’d both laughed at that one together. 

He also quite missed Velvet’s company, she came to mind often, and he’d want to go see her. Or maybe just message her. Nothing could replace the times they’d had together, no one was quite like her. It fucking sucked. He hated when he’d see things that he wanted to mention to her, or seeing things that reminded him of her. 

Still, the worst part was the almost constant anxiety, just waiting for Valentino to come and drag him back, back to that Hell. And if that did happen, he wouldn’t get off easily either. It had been a week, longer than he’d ever dare be away from Valentino, and he’d done it with the intentions of not returning. Which when he’d implied it before had also angered Valentino. To top it all off, he went to the one place he'd been told not to go to, in a similar fashion to Angel’s own leaving. 

He tried to not think about it all as much as possible, it led to trains of thought he didn’t want to have. Most commonly he ended up blaming himself again, Valentino was just trying to help, and gave him nearly everything he wanted. Yet still he was selfish and wanted more? He’d deserve whatever he got for being so selfish. Vox hated that it was true, and he didn’t want to acknowledge it. If he was going to be selfish, he’d go all the way. 

He kept dreading the moment, but nothing prepared him for when Valentino actually came. 

He’d sensed it, just before reaching the stairs to get downstairs to the lobby from the rooms. That familiar prickly presence, and he froze on the spot. He couldn’t go downstairs now—Valentino—he was actually…

Vox sat down at the first step, knowing he’d be able to hear the incoming interaction from here. He desperately pushed his panic down, wouldn’t want to chance someone seeing him like this after all. 

“I know he’s here.” The Princess must’ve expressed confusion at the statement as Valentino continued.  _ “Vox.  _ Where is he? I’ll be quickly out of your way if you’d be so kind as to point me to him.” 

“So...you’re not here for the Hotel?” Charlie asked instead. 

“I’m afraid not, this just isn’t the place for me.” Valentino said with a surprisingly neutral tone. 

“Well if you’re not here for the Hotel then—“ 

“Now I know you’re new, but let me put it this way. You can either tell me where he is or I can tear down this establishment  _ and then  _ find out where he is.” 

“I’m afraid that I can’t let that happen.” A new voice, Alastor’s cut in. Vox felt his anxiety spike up. He’d have no qualms pointing Valentino straight to him. 

Tensions rose as the two Overlords must’ve been staring each other down. Their respective auras becoming suffocating, and in response he felt his own flare up protectively. 

The silence was terrifying. Vox dug his claws into his upper arms, the pain grounding him, returning his sense of control. 

_ “Vox.”  _ The way it was said by Valentino, he knew that  _ he  _ was being addressed. His breath hitched in anticipation. “This can be simple, or you can let  _ her  _ take responsibility for this.” 

Vox stood up abruptly at that. Valentino wouldn’t dare do anything to Velvet.  _ He wouldn’t.  _ Could he take the chance? She—it would ruin her. 

_ Accept responsibility, you made the mistake, this is your fault. Don’t make Velvet suffer for your own selfishness.  _

Vox steadied his trembling hand on the guard rail of the stairs. And with a deep breath, he dismissed his dread and headed down, opening the door. 

Valentino quickly faced him, standing casually in the middle of the lobby. Alastor and Charlie did too, but he couldn’t look at either of them for long. The  _ shame,  _ the  _ humiliation  _ being too much _.  _

“Val—“ 

Valentino held up one hand, demanding silence from him. And then with another hand, gestured him over with a finger. 

Vox felt his nonexistent stomach drop. But he didn’t let his neutral expression morph into the fear he was really feeling, though he knew his body language betrayed some of it. His reputation was going to be in shambles after this, he could feel it. 

Vox walked over to Valentino, their height difference blatantly clear now. When he was within arms reach, he felt as Valentino rather roughly took a hold of his upper left arm. He involuntarily winced at the intensity of the grip. 

“Thank you for your services Princess. But Vox will be checking out now.” Valentino said  _ for  _ him, and without waiting for a response pulled Vox out of the lobby with him. 

His dread grew with every step they took farther away from the Hotel. Reality was coming to him as he felt himself be pushed inside the limo. 

And finally when Valentino climbed in and slammed the limo door shut, did Vox lose it. 

“Val—  _ please, please!”  _ Vox begged. “I’m  _ really sorry— _ it was a mistake—I just. I was being selfish and I  _ really am sorry!”  _

Valentino told the driver to go and then regarded Vox with a frown. He pulled Vox closer from the distance the other had been trying to create, two hands digging into Vox’s waist, one trailing didn’t the lower half of his screen. Almost mirroring the way he’d held prior to Vox’s attempt at running. 

“You’re right, you’ve made a terrible mistake. I  _ very explicitly  _ told you not to step foot in there.  _ Yet,  _ here we are.” Valentino said coldly.

“I—“

“Quiet.” Valentino hissed, pushing a crack into Vox’s screen as a warning. “Not only that, but you  _ left.”  _ With every word he digs his fingers deeper into Vox’s waist, taking note with pride how Vox shivers at the increasing pain. A blush spreading on his screen, which flickers where the crack resides. “You see, I don't understand. You’ve been given  _ so much,  _ and still you selfishly want more. Think of all the territory I’ve so graciously gifted, all the fame I’ve helped amass  _ for you,  _ all the times I’ve saved you from erasure. I've been nothing but helpful and patient when you’ve been good.” 

“You know you deserve to be punished, don’t you?” Valentino punctuates the sentence by adding more pressure onto Vox’s screen, causing a few more cracks. 

_ “Yes.”  _ Vox responded breathlessly. “But  _ please, I’m begging you.  _ Don’t leave me  _ in there.  _ I’ll do  _ anything.”  _

“Oh really now? You think you have a say after the stunt you pulled? I don’t think you’ve learned  _ your lesson  _ or  _ your place yet.”  _ The limo stopped, indicating they had arrived at the Studio. “No, you’ll be lucky to see daylight in a  _ year.”  _

Vox widened his eyes in horror.  _ A—a year..? In there?!  _ He’d never survive that. He was in disbelief, in denial. But as Valentino made to leave the limo, the reality of it all came crashing on him.  _ Ayearayearayearayear—No…  _ Vox felt his body enter fight or flight, his fear and adrenaline taking over. 

_ “You—you can't!”  _ Vox nearly shouted, face distraught. 

“You don’t tell me what I can and cannot do. I can, and I will.” Valentino noticed his restraint and pulled him out of the limo with force, two arms dragging him along despite his protests. 

“ _ No please!! No! NO!”  _ Vox dug his heels into the ground as Valentino taxingly dragged him through the lobby of the Studio. All the workers averted their eyes, knowing to an extent what was happening. They all knew it was coming too. 

Velvet, who had been waiting in the lobby with Adeleine and Kaunotar watched somewhat horrified and dumbstruck. Meanwhile Adeleine gave Kaunotar the money for their bet. 

_ “Val—we can—we can talk about this!! Please you don’t have to do this!!”  _ Vox continued to try and stop Valentino from taking him in there. Physically Valentino’s height and number of limbs gave him just too much of an advantage over Vox. Making Vox’s attempts quite futile. 

Valentino did not say anything nor did he relent. Vox’s powers kept surfacing, activating due to the high stress situation, as they tried to protect him from whatever was causing him this much distress. But they never got far as Valentino’s met them, and then Valentino used the deal made between them to forcibly cause Vox’s to retreat back. 

The elevator ride was filled with pleading and bargaining, but still Valentino said nothing. And when they arrived on the correct floor, making the hallway that the door was situated visible, Vox felt digital tears run down his screen, not that he could feel them, but he knew they were there. 

“ _ Val...don’t..don’t do this.”  _ Vox pleaded softly one last time. And as usual, there was nothing. Nothing but Vox being dutifully dragged to his impending doom. All the way until they were standing in front of the door into  _ the room.  _ Valentino stopped him in front of it, and forced him to keep his gaze facing it. 

“Understand, this punishment,  _ you’re _ doing this to  _ yourself.  _ You have no one to blame but  _ yourself.”  _ Valentino said from behind him, tone as cold as ever. “Hopefully this will be the last time for this, and you’ll finally understand  _ your place, your role.”  _

Vox stumbles as he is pushed, his psyche practically shattering when he hears the door close behind him. 

_ This was it.  _ He knew, he was ready to accept what he should be, instead of holding onto what he used to be. When that all consuming part of him would manifest again, Vox would finally accept its proposition, he’d let it take control. He’d be safe again. 

Already he hears the whispered promises, just a little longer. 

He briefly wondered what Velvet would think? What did she think of him in general now? She must’ve seen everything. It hurt him more than he knew to think of losing her companionship. It was all he had to really lose after all, the only thing of importance. He wanted to spend more time with her, her vibrant smile, extravagant personality—he was going to make things worse with  _ what ifs  _ in here. They were cruelly bittersweet, something he could never have. 

Vox heard the door open. He wasn’t going to trust it. 

“...Vox?” 

His screen shot up, was he already hallucinating her? But she looked so real. She shut the door, leaving the two of them in darkness. 

“Are you—What are  _ you  _ doing here?” Vox asked. If it was really her, Vox felt shameful to be in her presence.  _ Had she come to make fun of him?  _

“Hmm, I suppose I’ll start at the beginning.” Vox looked puzzled by her response. She in turn studied his now cracked screen. His tears...they were curious, the left side’s ones had a darker tint of cyan to it. “I always wondered about your relation to Val. Now It’s kinda obvious, you’re deathly scared of him.” She kept on going nonchalantly. 

“What does it matter?” Vox said quietly. Velvet gave him a sideways glance, and seeing him so...passive, it didn't sit right with her. She knew what she wanted to do, she’d seen this before and stood by, not this time. She’d help this time. She liked the time they spent together, and she couldn’t quite explain it, but she enjoyed his personality (despite it being annoying many times) and wanted to help preserve it. 

“Do you think all this is your fault?” Velvet asked, wanting to know the extent of the damage done. 

“I mean, I can’t deny it.” Vox pulled his legs closer to himself, admitting it aloud having more of an impact than before. 

“He’s fooled you.” She stated. “You...probably can’t see it fully, but hear this.  _ This— _ none of this is  _ your  _ fault. And  _ you _ deserve so much more than  _ any of this.” _ She said in absolute confidence. And she felt a warmth run through her at seeing the small smile on Vox’s face now. Apparently he liked the complement and reassurance. Although she wasn’t surprised. 

“Can I hug you?” She asked, figuring that he wouldn’t appreciate any forced contact right now, but might still like some willingly. Besides, she knew from experience that control was a big thing with these situations. 

“I’d like that.” Vox accepted the hug immediately, holding her gently. It made him want to cry again, but he kept himself composed. It felt really nice. How could someone as kind as her end up down here, Vox wondered. 

“You told me once that I could rely on you.” She said, letting the hug drag out. “Now, I’m going to ask you to rely on me.” 

Vox pulled back, a small smile still present, though much more visible with the cracks on his screen healing, “Has anyone ever told you how  _ amazing  _ you are?” 

“Hah! Lol, nah I know how amazing I am on my own.” She smirked. “Now it’s your turn.” 

“You’ve got interesting hobbies I must say.” Vox stated, his tone still withdrawn. 

“Helping friends?” 

He had a surprised expression on his face, “I’m a friend?” 

“Yes you dolt.” She rolled her eyes, as if what she said was supposed to have been obvious. She then thought to herself for a minute as Vox watched in silent curiosity. 

“I’ve got an idea!” Her sudden loud voice startled him, and she gave him an apologetic look. “I can’t do much about your being here—“ She saw him visibly deflate at the mention of his confinement to this place. “—but! Here, take this phone.” 

She handed him her phone, as he inspected it. She continued her explanation, “You can use it to entertain yourself while here. And how about I call you with my spare phone when I have time and we can just talk.” 

Vox didn’t say anything for the longest time, “You—you’d be up to doing that?” She could hear the hopeful undertone in his question. 

“Yes, absolutely. I decided I would help you, and I’m going the full length. Don’t you worry!” Her pigtails swished as she made her declaration. “You going to be okay if I leave for now?” 

“Yeah, I will be now.” He gave her a small smile again, and she returned it. 

“I’ll call ya soon!” 

She left, but Vox felt better than he had in a long time. He had to admit, the interaction was...weird, but he did find her unpredictable nature charming. She really was too good for Hell, in his humble opinion. 

Clutching the phone close to his body, he kept up his smile. The darkness was starting to light up around him, and the whispers, they were gone. It was a miracle.  _ She  _ was a miracle. His  _ everything.  _

He felt hope settle comfortably in his mind again. 

_ Thank you, my friend.  _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Velvet, can you tell?

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been writing the big sads lately. 
> 
> Other than that, written at 2AM, no proofreading ha! 
> 
> And as always, kudos, reads and comments are greatly appreciated, thank you!


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